Cristiano Ronaldo: Man Utd sponsor to help finance transfer back to Old Trafford – Paper Round

The Daily Mail have picked up on a report from Auto Esporte claiming Manchester United sponsors Chevrolet will help finance a move for Cristiano Ronaldo, who left the club for Real Madrid 11 years ago. Now at Juventus, the 35-year-old would still command a large fee and significant salary, but given Ronaldo’s commercial value American car company Chevrolet could bankroll the Portugal captain’s return to Old Trafford.

Paper Round’s view: With his Juve contract running out in 2022, perhaps this is a transfer saga-in-waiting given he will enter the final 12 months of his contract in the summer. That means speculation over whether Juve will look to cash in, where the forward could end up, and what it could take for the Serie A champions to convince him to stay. Be prepared for Ronaldo transfer news to surface weekly – at least.

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Following on from Mino Raiola’s comments that “it’s over” for client Paul Pogba at Manchester United, the British press have been speculating where the Frenchman will end up next after his agent’s quotes made several back pages. Pogba wants to explore the possibility of a move to Real Madrid, with the Mirror adding that PSG, Manchester City, Juventus and Inter could be other possibilities. The Daily Mail meanwhile have urged United to show Raiola and Pogba the door.

Paper Round’s view: Easily forgotten in all this but Pogba himself has said nothing publicly the past 24 hours. No Twitter post, only a couple of routine Instagram Story posts from training. It’s his agent doing the talking, and while he may well speak for his client this should be a reminder for United to avoid business with Raiola in the future, for – talented the acquisitions may be – it has rarely paid off in the long-run due to the unwanted press and back pages. It will be intriguing to see how United play this latest outburst out.

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Mesut Ozil could leave Arsenal in January, with the Mirror carrying quotes from Fenerbahce congress member Murat Zorlu, who claims a deal for the midfielder is 90 per cent done. Ozil has been frozen out of the Arsenal side under Mikel Arteta, not playing since March, while he failed to make either the Premier League or Europa League squad for the current season. His contract expires in the summer, but the club could look to get the German off their wage bill given he reportedly earns £350,000-a-week. Turkey appears to be a possible destination for the 32-year-old.

Paper Round’s view: Just get this done so it’s no longer a thing. It has been a burden for all involved for too long; too many questions for Arteta, too much money spent on wages by the club, and too much time wasted by Ozil at a club who clearly did not want him in the summer – when the transfer window was still open. Hopefully something can be sorted in January.

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Fabinho is set for a “hefty pay rise” at Liverpool, the Guardian reports, with the Brazilian endearing himself to the club he joined from Monaco in 2018 even more after emerging as a more than viable centre-back option to cover the loss of Virgil van Dijk and Joe Gomez to long-term injuries. Fabinho has dropped back from midfield to put in a string of impressive performances for the Premier League champions, who are now keen to reward the 27-year-old with a new contract. His current £100,000-a-week deal runs until 2023, and the Reds will look to extend that by two or three seasons.

Paper Round’s view: One of the positives to come out of Liverpool’s long list of injury problems. Fabinho has been fantastic at the back, and with Gomez and Van Dijk out potentially for the season, he will be a key player the Reds hope to keep fit if they are to retain the league and go far in the Champions League as well.